The Reign of Jehoram.
The Wickedness of Jehoram
1Now, Jehoshaphat slept with his fathers and was buried with his fathers in the City of David, in the tombs of the kings. And Jehoram, his son, son-in-law of the wicked Ahab of Israel, reigned in his stead. He may have been coregent with his father for some time before the latter’s death. 2And he had brethren, the sons of Jehoshaphat, Azariah, and Jehiel, and Zechariah, and Azariah (Hebrew, Azariahu), and Michael, and Shephatiah, all these were the sons of Jehoshaphat, king of Israel, the title here being given to the king of Judah on account of the legitimacy of his rule and because he was a descendant of David. 3And their father gave them, as their portion of the inheritance, great gifts of silver and of gold and of precious things with fenced cities in Judah, the revenues of which served for their maintenance; but the kingdom gave he to Jehoram, because he was the first-born, according to the principle of succession in the kingdom. 4Now, when Jehoram was risen up to the kingdom of his father, he strengthened himself, bent every effort toward establishing his position, and slew all his brethren with the sword and divers also of the princes of Israel, in order to remove all rivals and possible opponents. 5Jehoram was thirty and two years old when he began to reign, and he reigned eight years in Jerusalem. 6And he walked in the way of the kings of Israel, of the northern kingdom, who had introduced idolatry, like as did the house of Ahab; for he had the daughter of Ahab to wife; and he wrought that which was evil in the eyes of the Lord, as was to be expected under the circumstances. 7Howbeit, the Lord would not destroy the house of David, namely, by punishing Jehoram with death and the extermination of his family, because of the covenant that He had made with David, 2 Sam. 7, and as He promised to give a light to him and to his sons forever, the light of the royal power and dignity, of the Davidic dynasty. 8In his days the Edomites, who had been overthrown by David, 2 Sam. 8, 14, revolted from under the dominion of Judah and made themselves a king, without asking the consent of Jehoram. 9Then Jehoram went forth with his princes, the generals of his army, and all his chariots with him, the infantry probably being outnumbered by the rebellious Edomites; and he rose up by night, in a sudden, unexpected attack, and smote the Edomites which compassed him in, and the captains of the chariots, thereby cutting a way of escape for himself. 10So the Edomites revolted from under the hand of Judah unto this day, never again to become subject to Judah. The same time also did Libnah revolt from under his hand, a city in the lowlands southwest of Jerusalem, in the former territory of the Philistines, because he had forsaken the Lord God of his fathers. 11Moreover, he made high places in the mountains of Judah, the very places of idolatry which his father and grandfather had destroyed, and caused the inhabitants of Jerusalem to commit fornication, spiritual adultery, by joining the northern kingdom in Baal-worship, and compelled Judah thereto.
The Lord’s Punishment upon Jehoram
12And there came a writing to him, Jehoram, from Elijah, the prophet, probably a letter written or dictated shortly before his death, saying, Thus saith the Lord God of David, thy father, to whom alone the continuation of the dynasty was to be ascribed, Because thou hast not walked in the ways of Jehoshaphat, thy father, nor in the ways of Asa, king of Judah, 13but hast walked in the way of the kings of Israel, in all their idolatrous wickedness, and hast made Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem to go a-whoring, in idolatry, like to the whoredoms of the house of Ahab, for Jehoram had introduced the worship of Astarte, and also hast slain thy brethren of thy father’s house, in cold-blooded, cruel murder, which were better than thyself, 14behold, with a great plague, a severe scourge, will the Lord smite thy people, and thy children, and thy wives, and all thy goods, namely, by devastating invasions; 15and thou shalt have great sickness by disease of thy bowels, until thy bowels fall out by reason of the sickness day by day, during many days, for a long time. It was a singular and horrible disease, that of rotting away of the intestines in a slow disintegration. 16Moreover, the Lord, in fulfilling this prophecy, stirred up against Jehoram the spirit of the Philistines, who had been held in check for a long time, and of the Arabians that were near the Ethiopians, those of Southern Arabia. 17And they came up into Judah and brake into it, they forced their way into the country in spite of all attempted opposition, and carried away all the substance that was found in the king’s house, plundering even the royal palace and the royal domains, and his sons also and his wives, the members of his harem, so that there was never a son left him save Jehoahaz, the youngest of his sons, also called Ahaziah and Azariah. 18And after all this the Lord smote him in his bowels with an incurable disease, apparently some form of extreme dysentery. 19And it came to pass that in process of time, after the end of two years, his bowels fell out by reason of his sickness, the very intestines having been eaten away by the horrible malady; so he died of sore diseases, suffering severe pains. And his people made no burning for him like the burning of his fathers; see chap. 16, 14, where we read that sweet spices were burned in memory of the dead. 20Thirty and two years old was he when he began to reign, and he reigned in Jerusalem eight years, and departed without being desired; no one regretted his death, it was a relief for the entire kingdom. Howbeit, they buried him in the City of David, but not in the sepulchers of the kings, he was denied even this last honor. Like Jehoram, all wicked, idolatrous people are bound for destruction. God visits them with His displeasure even here in time, and eventually, in eternity, they will have to bear the punishment of their transgressions forever.